Tag Archives: combustion engines

Tesla disrupt…

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With all the attention Tesla has been getting – and seeking – lately, a major company just threw down the automotive gauntlet in the electric car arena. Enter Volvo, the perennial boxy but safe, Swedish import, which just announced that come 2019, it will only sell hybrid or electric vehicles. That’s right. The ultra-reliable, ever dependable Volvo will likely be giving Tesla a serious run for its money. The fact that its got a solid, dependable reputation to back it up only sweetens the pot. Lucky for Volvo, its parent company Geely Automobile Holdings of China has already sold tons of electric vehicles and now Volvo gets to tap into all those tech resources. And it’s not just Tesla that should be worried. Toyota, Honda and BMW, to name a few, should also look to up their game now that Volvo has entered the field. This announcement is epic since it means that Volvo becomes the very first major automobile manufacture to make the decision to completely kick internal combustion engines to the curb. Interestingly enough, hybrids accounted for only about 2% of auto sales in the U.S. last year, in part because gas prices have fallen so much, that people don’t mind getting cars with traditional gas-guzzling engines.

Speaking of which…

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Shares of Tesla took a nasty little drop today after the company reported that its second quarter sales were flat as a pancake. To add insult to fiscal injury, the company also reported that it delivered just 22,000 vehicles. That seems like a good thing except for the fact that Tesla had built over 25,000 cars. Demand is good. Oversupply is not so good. At all. And the fact that consumers have stopped demanding the Model S sedans and the Model X utility cars leaves Wall Street feeling less than stoked about Tesla. Especially Goldman Sachs, which just released a report documenting its concern over Tesla’s slow growth. It’s never good when Goldman Sachs is concerned about you. Naturally, Tesla pointed its finger at the ever-reliable and handy excuse of “production issues” to explain the shortfall of deliveries. Too bad Wall Street didn’t seem to care what excuse Tesla used.

Another one bites the dust…

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Today’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing is brought to us by True Religion, purveyor of super-pricey denim. True Religion brass is pointing the finger at e-commerce and the shift in consumer spending habits, since customers are choosing to purchase their goods from their devices instead of heading into actual stores where True Religion merchandise is typically sold. Fortunately, the company was able to come up with a restructuring agreement with several of its lenders that should get rid of approximately $350 million of its debt, while its creditors would get paid in full, at least the ones critical to the company’s operations. In the meantime, with 140 stores still under its belt, the company is going to explore ways to “reinvigorate the brand.” In other words, it is going to try to figure out how to get people to spend hundred of dollars on True Religion’s pricy merchandise once again.